In the Next Room (or The Vibrator Play)

The Milwaukee Rep closes its Stiemke Studio season with a production of a historical comedy by popular contemporary playwright Sarah Ruhl, <i>In the Next Room (or The Vibrator Play)</i>. Set in a wealthy Victorian home, the play explores changes in upper-class culture at the dawn of a new age. Two women who are sexually frustrated with their husbands engage in sexual encounters with an awkward-looking Victorian vibrator. Thus awakened, one of the women looks to have the same kind of satisfaction with her husband that she experienced with the rather large and ponderous machine. Running through April 22, <I>In the Next Room</i> covers a part of history largely ignored; its shrewd novelty has made it a hit.